Penny's Curious (BLACK)
by Age of Continuity
Summary: Based off of an issue of the Lois Lane comics, Penny becomes intrigued about life as an African American girl after getting into an argument with a new student.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: I know, you guys. No update on Alternate and Improbable History. I'm sorry. It will be done…right after this. Now, this is a request by retro mania, or my version of it any way. It's based off of _Lois Lane: Superman's Girlfriend_ issue #106, entitled "I am Curious BLACK", where Lane becomes a black woman for 24 hours to experience life on the other side of the two races. Don't worry, this doesn't mean she becomes a monkey or something, thankfully the writers were very pro civil rights and racial equality, as I hope to be here. Enjoy!**

* * *

 _Weird._

 _That's what this school was_ , thought Penny Peterson. After recieving a kid with a dog for a dad, hating that kid, teasing him(how she wished she hadn't), convincing him to let you manage to screw with time as we know it(how she wished _he_ hadn't), and being saved and falling in love with that kid(yeah, she admitted it), you tend to be pretty hard to be suprised. But, this sure suprised her.

In front of the class was a girl, shifting her feet and looking down at the floor, as if she wished she could melt into it. Her skin was dark, a rich, chocolate tone, with matching eyes and frizzy black hair in a loose 'fro. She was wearing a navy blue Detroit Tigers shirt, along with dark grey pants(it was October, after all). She stole the spotlight away from the sixty something year old teacher. As everyone in the room stared and gaped, the teacher launched into the typical speech.

"Now class, please welcome our new student. Jackie, was it?", asked the teacher with a raised eyebrow.

"J-Jacquile. Jacquile Williams," stammered back Jacquile. Jeez, was she shy, thought Penny.

"Right. Sorry, Jacquile. Anyway, give her a nice welcome to Susan B. Anthony Elementary, kids!"

Hard to believe living in a city of about ten million people, he had never seen a girl who looked like this before. A flood of questions began to run in. She knew looking like this ment she was "black", but she didn't know why. Shouldn't it be "brown"? And she knew she was "white", but was there a diference? Do "blacks" live differently than "whites"?She knew the jokes her husband sometimes used when he had a few more drinks than usual(she was 8, but she wasn't stupid). Was that the truth? What is it like to be…different, like Sherman or Jackquil or whatever her name was? What did it mean to have skin like her, or family like him? What did it mean to be different?

It was soon lunch, and the girl had barely spoken. And Penny still had no answers to her questions.

"So, Sherman, what do you think of the new kid?", she asked, biting into her ham and cheese sandwich.

"Well, she seems okay," responded Sherman, swallowing part of his usual tuna sandwich.

"I don't know, Sherman…she's barely spoken! Isn't that suspicious to you?", she asked.

"Give her a chance, Penny. She just arrived, she's nervous. If somone would go over there and talk to her, make her feel welcome...", stealtily(he thought so) suggested Sherman.

"No way. I can't risk doing that! I'm popular!", she whined. "What if she turns out to be a loser?" Sherman shot her a quick glare.

"Do it.", he said, with no question evident in his tone.

"No!", she protested.

"Oh, just do it! Come on, Penny!", he begged.

"Fine, I'll do it. Whatever.", she huffed. She hated to end her statements with "whatever". It means she lost.

She walked over to her table. She was sitting all alone, eating her apple. It was much like their first meeting, except the roles were reversed. _Penny_ was the one bouncing from foot to foot, and Jacquile was sitting patiently, waiting for an explanation for what was in front of her.

"Uh, hi!", she uttered, nervously. _Oh my God, I sound like a dork._

Jacquile looked at her for a minute. "…Hi?"

"I'm Penny."

"Jacquile. But you knew that. Why are you over here?"

"C-cuz I thought you'd be nervous, with a new school and everything. _Really? Boy, I sound STUPID!_

"A little. But I mean, why should I trust you? Are you trying to prank me or something?", she asked.

"No! Why would I?!", she yelled.

"Are you blind?! Cause I'm different, whitey!"

Penny had never been called that before. Penny was getting angry. Why was she so crazy?! Couldn't she see she was just trying to be friends?

"What's your problem, homie?", she said, dripping the last word in sarcasm. By now the entire cafeteria was engaged in the conversation.

"My problem is I can smell when something's fishy, alpha bitch!", bit back Jacquile, cueing a chorus of "Oooooooo"s.

"Jacquile! Penny! Here, now!", yelled the teacher, effectively ending the lunch and a show.

As the two students dregged over to the hallway and the rest of the students resumed eating, Penny noticed an odd coincidence. There's been two new students in one year. She managed to get both of them in trouble. On both of their first days, at lunch, no less.

Weird, indeed.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Hey guys! First off, to followers/favoriters/reviewers, An Alternate and Improbable History's first two chapters have been re-written, with three on the way as I type. I'm taking a break from that for this, cause I think this is more...pressing. Looking DIRECTLY at you, retro-mania! Nah, just joking.**

If you had asked Penny one thing she learned today, she would probably respond with the principle's horrible taste in decor.

He sat in a mahogany chair, more fit for a head of the table than the principle, sitting his papers on a lime-green metal desk. Six bucket chairs were equiped for an audience, five of those were being taken up at the moment. Along with...God, what color _was_ the carpet? A gray, green, yellow, red mess that smelled of blood, vomit, and tobacco smoke.

"I've called you here to this little meeting to address a few...issues in your daughters' behavior. I think you should see the video in private before you judge anything."

And so, the parents, Paul, Patti, and Annie went into a back room, while the two students continued to glare each other down. This was what Penny got for trying to be nice, it seemed. More trouble. After what couldn't have been more than a few minutes, but what felt like _hours,_ the parents came out.

"Well, she was being racist, so what's the problem?", questioned Annie.

"Racist? How? By being sarcastic?", responded the principal.

"Uh, yeah! Duh!"

"Ms. Williams, even if she _was_ being off-color-"

"All it ever is is about color!", yelled Annie.

"-your daughter is _clearly_ in the wrong. This is an elementary school, for God's sake! That kind of language is not tolerated here, despite how it was previously."

"If you say one more incriminating word about _my_ daughter, I'll sue you for everything you've got!", replied Paul, fed up with the conversation.

"Mr. Peterson, I am a single mother coming from a city that is only surviving because of a government bailout. Do you _honestly_ think you're gonna get much?"

That seemed to shut the wordy lawyer up.

"Come on, Jacquille. We're getting outta here."

Slam! The two walked out of Susan B. Anthony Elementary, leaving everyone in the office shocked and confused.

"Uh, Mr. and Mrs. Peterson, you may go. Your daughter will be fine. And Ms. Peterson, you may return to class."

* * *

Penny decided to ride to Sherman's, if she could. She needed a distraction from all the questions. Her parents gave it the okay, and that was all she needed. Mr. Peabody soon pulled up in his red scooter and sidecar.

"Hello, Sherman. Are we having an extra guest today?", asked Mr. Peabody, as he raised an eyebrow.

"Well, she said if you thought it was okay, Mr. Peabody."

"Get on, you two. You should know I'm always prepared for a suprise."

The two shared the side-car for the ride home. Despite the closeness, it wasn't all that awkward. That's what happens when you travel through time together.

The two kids headed for Sherman's bedroom, while Mr. Peabody ducked into the hall, to work on...something or another.

"You get in trouble?", asked Sherman.

"Do you honestly need to ask?", said Penny, holding her wrist and giving an imaginary camera puppy dog eyes. "You know I never do."

"Oh, right." Sherman scratched the back of his head. _Why did I ask that?_

"I'll be right back," she said as she walked towards the door.

"O...kay?", said Sherman, cut off by the door slamming shut mid-sentence.

She was...curious. It was one of those flaws she had. Like being bossy. And cruel. And not apologizing. And-

Well, she would be standing there for _years_ if she thought about them all. She followed the hallway she had seen Mr. Peabody go down, wondering what he was doing.

She caught him looking a over a cylinderical, metal machine, which was probably very heavy, very expensive, and very important. She noticed a sliding glass panel into the metallic chamber. Was it a bed or something? Mr. Peabody turned around, and jumped, startled by her presence.

"Ms. Peterson! What are you doing here?"

"Oh, nothing much...what is that you're working on?", she said, in her best "cute" voice. The voice she used to get what she wanted.

"Well, it's...it's a device that can change your appearence."

"You mean like plastic surgery or something?" She had heard about that stuff a few times, and how it almost never came out right.

"Yes, but faster and better."

"How fast?"

"Oh, seconds."

"Does it have a name?"

"Not yet. It's just a prototype. Of course, the physical changes aren't permanent...yet. I've encoutered a problem where they only last a few days at the most, hours at the least. But that will be fixed once I get a few more volunteers for more data points."

With this, he started to walk away.

"I'll be right back, just don't touch anything."

Penny smirked. " _Peabodys are just oblivious, aren't they?_ ", she thought, as she stepped into the chamber.


End file.
